NGE: From the Ashes
by Devaro Ayanami
Summary: Twenty years after Third Impact is stopped by Shinji, the world continues to struggle. Wars again cover whole nations, and the knowledge of Eva is no longer only Nerv's domain. It's not connected to I'm Needed. Not sure about the genres though...hmmm
1. Fighting myself

This is an updated Chapter. Changes in bottom half. See notes at the end. ~ D.A.

**I Fight Myself**

NGE Fanfic

_By Devaro Ayanami_

I jerk the butterfly handles back and my Eva leaps back from the Prog knife strike of my opponent. I land and my Eva reaches it's right hand up to it's left shoulder, and I draw my Prog knife from it's pylon. We stand facing each other for a moment, and I think about how I got in this situation.

The Pilot had challenged me to a duel, to avenge the death of his older sister who fought me several weeks ago when her government tried to destroy NERV. I agreed over the objections of my Commander, but I had a condition: that he involved no one else, not his government, not mine, and no other Pilots. This would be a one-on-one.

I dodge to the left and swing down with my Prog knife into his Eva's right arm, slashing it open, and sending a splash of it's blood over my Eva's right hand. He jerks back, clutching his arm to his chest. I can imagine what he's feeling, like his own arm has just been sliced open.

I side step farther to my left, and drive a stab at his upper arm. He ducks and drives a stab into my Eva's gut, and suddenly it's like my own stomach is on fire.

I scream.

I've felt pain like this before in Eva, but this time is different. As I hear Command yelling something about synch-filters, I realize I must have a very high synch-ratio right now. I already know the filters won't help much. Not all of Eva is electronic, you can't fully dull or block the pain of one mind from reaching another with just machines.

I step back, pulling off of his knife, and slash down with mine, aiming for his right shoulder. He jerks his knife up, catching mine, then punches me with his left hand.

I would scream again, as this hit lands on the wound from the first, but the blow seemed to drive the air from my lungs.

My Eva doubles over, and his knife slides past mine to stab me in the neck. I choke on the LCL for a moment as the pain registers, then I swing my knife around and land a slash to his left shoulder.

For the first time, I here him scream. I realize he must have just opened his comm channel to speak, but I interrupted him when I slashed his shoulder.

He screams again, but this time it's a word, not a sound of pain, though pain is present. It's a cry of sorrow and pain.

"SIS!!!!!!" He cries, and pulls his knife from my neck and then drives it into my chest.

I choke and gasp, as I suddenly find myself unable to breath. Again I here Command yelling, this time about my plugsuit's life-support functions. I stop listening to them.

"You killed her!!!" He yells, and stabs me in the chest again. I fall to my knees and collapse backwards.

"Yes..." I gasp to him over the open comm.

"WHY!?! Why did you kill her?!?" He yells, stabbing me again. _Doctor Ayanami isn't gonna be happy about the damage..._

I don't answer, I can't really breath right now.

"Why...?" He gasps as he breaks down crying, leaning over my Eva, his knife in it's chest.

"Because...because if I didn't..." I gasp back, fighting to both regain my breath and speak, "If I didn't, she would have killed everyone I care about. Instead of one dying, it would have been dozens."

"That's no excuse!!!" He screams, and jerks the knife from my chest, tossing it aside, and slams his fists on my Eva's chest, pounding on me in time to his cries.

"Why couldn't you just disable her?!? Why did she have to die!?! Why couldn't you save her?!?" He cries, each question punctuated with a double-fisted slam to my chest.

It's getting hard to breath again, but I fight to answer him anyways.

"I did, but her Eva reactivated." I gasp out, speaking the only thing I can: the truth, "I tried to disable her again...but her synch ratio was so high that...no matter what I could have done...the feed-back was killing her...We got med teams to her...but by then it was too late."

I pause as I realize he had stopped pounding on my Eva while I was speaking. I continue, more to myself than him.

"It's the Evas, the d___ Evas. They put us in them, knowing we might die. But no one else can take our place. So they do everything they can to make sure we come home...but sometimes...it's not enough...sometimes we die, and nothing can change that when it happens...We can only hope and pray it doesn't happen again..."

He appears in the comm window, which before had simply shown 'SOUND ONLY'. I can see the tears hanging in the corners of his eye before they dissolve in the LCL. Before he speaks, my pain-hazed mind points out to me his missing his left eye. His remaining eye holds me in place, looking like what I see in the mirror. Sad, determined, kind, and one thing I haven't seen in my own eyes: Lost. He looks lost, like he doesn't know where to go or what to do.

"It doesn't matter...I thought…they said...I'd feel better for killing the one who killed her...but I just feel horrible inside, and I haven't even killed you...but I know that if I did, I'd only feel worse."

He looks down, holding back his tears.

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry...I...I just want to go home...but I've failed, they won't want me back..."

Lost.

"We'll take you." I blurt out, then open a window to Command, "Rei...? We'll take him in, right?" I almost plead.

My Commander, Rei Ayanami, looks at me impassively with her red eyes. She glances up slightly, looking past me at the other comm window showing the other pilot. After a few moments, she speaks in her typical monotone.

"Yes, Kaji-kun, he can stay here. It is the least we can offer."

She turns to the side, and I hear her order med teams to our location and begin arguing with the Sub-Commander as I sluggishly and painfully move my Eva onto its hands and knees. I feel my link with Unit-07 slip from my mind as it shuts down, and my breathing becomes easier though my throat is sore. _I must have been screaming more than I thought_ I think, as the entry plug reverts to it's normal brass color, the only colors braking it up being the grey and blue of my plugsuit, and the comm windows.

"...Thank you...I...I'm so sorry..." the other pilot says.

I look at him, taking in his features. He looks a lot like me: Short messy black hair, a brown eye, young face, a slightly rounded chin. Even his plugsuit is a similar color. And his eye… For a moment, I thought is was red, but maybe it was just my imagination.

"Pilot Alex..." Rei says, drawing my eyes back to her window with her suddenly tender voice, "I will see you soon."

"Okay..." I say, a whisper that echoes oddly in the entry plug, and the comm windows close.

After a few minutes, I hear the med team climbing my Eva and I eject the plug. As the LCL drains, I lean over the side of the command chair and cough a few times, letting out the LCL in my lungs and watching it evaporate in to warm air here on the surface. My chest and neck ache.

As the med team carefully lifts me up and places me on a gurney, I look past my Eva's shoulder pylon to the other Evangelion, and see another med team getting its pilot out.

I smile, and I think: _I'm glad that this time...I didn't have to kill myself_.

As I begin to pass out, I feel Rei's gentle mind whisper to mine: _No, you did not_. I feel her smile as she says: _You know what Ikari-kun knew, that when you fight and kill other humans, you are killing a part of yourself each time. Sleep well, little Kaji-kun ._

And then, I slept, a content smile on my face.

**AN: Ok, I'm reposting this chapter with a few changes, though not many, hopefully to make it flow a little better with what I wrote afterwards. I've got started on another chapter, and I may end-up making a full story out of this. This chapter is really just a teaser and my first chapter of fan fiction (ever) so I'll leave it up for those who might be curious. Don't judge the story just with this one chapter. R&R please. **~** Devaro A.**


	2. Victory, Loss, Revelations

Fallen Angel

NGE Fanfic

By Devaro Ayanami

I step down from the shattered steps of an apartment complex, and glance around me at my fellow pilots. Four of us, four Children out of a original five. Four 15-year old kids. My Friends.

First, Twelfth Children: Terinami "Hellfire" Soryu, daughter of the Second and Third Children, she chose to use her mother's maiden name. Her coppery hair tied back in a single, loose ponytail, and her stormy blue eyes so much like her father's.

Next, Eleventh Children: Arael "Angel" Ayanami, she is the daughter of Kensuke Aida and the First Children. Her shoulder-length blue hair gently frames her face, and contrasts with her sharp, red eyes.

Then, fifteenth Children: Alexander "White Knight" Kaji, son of Ritsuko and Ryoji Kaji, he gets his nickname because he bleaches his hair white. Unlike his father, he keeps his hair short, reducing the contrast with his brown eyes.

And lastly, me, fourteenth Children: Ryoji "Iincho" Horaki, son of the Fourth Children and Hikari Horaki. My nickname is because I was our class's Iincho, like my mother, before we became Eva Pilots. My hair is short and brown, matching my brown eyes.

None of them look up, all of them lost in thought. He's dead, and so are three of the five enemy pilots, the other two in the infirmary. What have we come to? To be sending kids to war, to kill other kids. But which is worse? That kids are having to grow-up in a trial by fire, or that some of those kids gleefully leap into the flames?

My team is lucky though, we work for Nerv, and our parents learned from their experiences. They do everything they can to keep us safe, without leaving us un-prepared for the reality of what we are asked to do.

But it wasn't enough. In our first engagement, we've lost someone, a new kid who never sat in the plug before today. No real chance to get to know him. It sickens me to realize I don't even remember his name.

And what makes it worse is that we did everything right. He may have been new, but he did good, better than my uncle Shinji said he did in his first match. We just got ambushed. We didn't screw-up, we just lost. But like Terinami says, "Losing and screwing-up are the same damn thing".

I look at Soryu, and just barely spot the tears on her cheeks as she looks at the building her Eva, Unit-02, is hunched behind, her eyes not really seeing. I know how she must feel, because although we didn't really know him, we had still grown attach to the quiet and subtle jokes he made through-out the day.

I turn next to Arael, and am not surprised to see a blank expression on her face as she looks at the hood of the battered car she's sitting on, an expression we've grown-up to expect from both the Ayanami women. What I am surprised by is the tears slowly filling her eyes, something totally at odds with her lack of expression. I'd never seen her do anything but show a small smile or frown, and the one time that she laughed.

As I start walking towards Arael, I glance over at Alex. He's my best friend, and I see on his face an expression I'm used to from him: sadness. He always seems sad about something, but this time I know what it is: the other pilot. He catches my glance and nods his head, then turns to look at Soryu. He'll be fine after he's had some alone time, but I know he'll stay with Soryu, bottling his hurt away 'til later.

I reach Arael and place my hand on her shoulder gently.

"Angel...?" I say.

She turns her gaze to my face as I touch her shoulder,

"Iincho, I...Ryoji-kun, Michael is…" She tries to speak in her typical calm and quiet manner, but stops, and her mask falls away as all the tears she had been holding back begin to flow slowly down her face.

I step around to kneel in front of her and I hug her close as she begins to silently cry. I gently rub her upper back, whispering it would be alright. After a moment she wraps her arms around me, returning the hug. I wish I could do more, but I don't know what to say or do, so all I do is hold her, trying to take some of the hurt away. I'm not really sure why, but she seemed to have an almost sibling-like relationship with Michael from the moment he arrived in the briefing room that first day.

I wouldn't know until later how similar Michael, her, and Rei's backgrounds were.

I feel horrible. I feel empty inside, gaining no comfort from the knowledge that I killed those trying to kill me.

I feel hurt, both physically and emotionally. My body aches from remembered hits my Eva took during the hurried combat to protect Nerv. I feel tired as well, the adrenaline beginning to wear off.

"I'm tired," Terinami says quietly, but loud enough we all hear her, "let's head back."

We all nod, and follow her to the Recovery VTOL that is waiting for us nearby.

* * *

"The idiots! Nerv trains their pilots, guides them in building Eva-type combat-support vehicles, and what do they do? Bite the hand that feeds them." the Director of Operations and Nerv Sub-Commander, Asuka Langley Ikari, yells. We stand nearby in the Observation room which overlooks the Geofront, waiting for the commander, Rei Ayanami, to arrive.

As if summoned by the thought, Commander Ayanami walks into the room, a folder held under one arm as she looks over each of us, pausing on her daughter as a small flash of concern flows across her face.

"Pilot Soryu, Pilot Kaji, you are dismissed. You performed well, now go get some rest." she says, her face softening slightly.

"I'll be home in a little while schatzen, your father is already there." Asuka says, sounding far more gentle than a few moments before, as Terinami and Alexander leave the room.

"Pilot Horaki," Rei says drawing mine and the other's attention back to her, "What I am about to tell you is highly classified. Only five other people, including myself, know this: Michael O'Neil was an Angel. Similar to the the 17th, Tabris, whom most knew as Kaoru Nagisa."

"WHAT!?!" Asuka explodes, storming over to Rei, "You let an ANGEL into the base and pilot an Eva! What were you THINKING!?!"

"He posed no threat to us." she simply says.

"He…posed no THREAT?!? He was an ANGEL for crying out loud! How could he 'not pose a threat' !?!"

"Because Lilith and Adam are gone, and neither I nor my daughter have sufficiently pure angel genetics to initiate a 'Fourth Impact'. More so than Tabris, Pilot O'Neil had free will to choose what he wished to do. With Adam and Lilith gone, there was nothing drawing him. No need to bond with the First or Second."

I stand there, not sure what to do or say. I'm not sure what shocked me more: the fact that Michael was an angel, or the little fact Rei let slip that she and Arael are both part angel as well.

The last part made sense, I guess. I, like the others, had simply always believed the hair and eyes were oddly colored because Rei was a clone of Yui Ikari, and that Arael simply got it from being her daughter. None of us had ever connected their eye color with that of Kaoru's eyes from the few color pictures there were of the 17th angel. We had also not made the connection between Michael's grey hair, at seventeen no less, with Kaoru's hair color. Though in our defense his eyes where not red, but purple.

"Commander…" all three turn to me when I speak, and I clear my thoat nervously, "Did you just, uh, just say you're part angel…?"

She blinks, and I can almost see her replaying her words in her mind, and then her eyes widen. She turns her gaze, which was hinting at panic, towards Asuka, who simply shrugs. Rei then turns her gaze, now looking slightly worried, to her daughter. Arael shrugs and turns her face so I can't see it, but not before I catch a hint of fear on it.

"I did." she says, turning back to me, her face blank.

"Could you…clarify please?"

Nodding, she explains her origins and original purpose. She also tells me of her choice to alter Shinji's wish to return alone by sending others back. Asuka smiles, her eyes distant, as Rei tells of her returning to find Shinji and Asuka dating, and their including her as Shinji's sister. She also reveals the presence of other Angels, like Tabris and Michael, that she and the Magi computers have discovered.

"You mean there are MORE of them?!?" Asuka interrupts.

"Yes, though they are few. So far seven have been found, not counting Pilot O'Neil, all in Japan. I do not know if others exist. Michael was the only one found in Tokyo-3, and the only one contacted to be a Pilot." Rei replies, glancing over to Asuka.

"Fine. So, what now? Obviously we can't trust China any more, and we may have to guard against Russia as well!" Asuka says as she and Rei begin to discuss future plans for Nerv.

The sudden change in topic throwing me off, I turn to Arael. She meets my gaze, and I still see the fear in her eyes, but I see hope too.

"Truth?" I simply say.

"…all of it…" she replies after a moment, determination entering her eyes.

I walk over to her, keeping my face a blank as I can. I see the determination waver a moment before hardening again as I stop in front of her.

"Thank you." I say, before gently wrapping my arms around her, silently letting her know I'm not mad and that I still trust her.

At first tense, she relaxes and returns the hug. We stand there for a moment before I hear a sigh behind me. We jump apart, startled, as we both remember there are others in the room. Asuka chuckles as she watches, and Rei simply smiles her normal smile, as we both turn slightly red.

"Go on home you two." Asuka says.

"I will see you soon, Arael. Pilot Horaki, I will see you before the synch test tomorrow, along with the other Pilots." Rei speaks as she turns back to Asuka, and we leave the room.

* * *

I lay in my bed, thinking. So much happened today. Struggle, victory, loss, revelation. I'm not sure what to make of it all, but I'm sure I can trust the others. I wonder how they'll react to what I was told, about Michael, Rei, and Arael.

Probably not as bad as Asuka did, I think as I chuckle quietly.

Seven more angels, all of which could be friends if we find them.

Friends…or enemies…

I jump, startled, as thoughts not my own float through my mind.

What was that… I think, before yawning, and begin to fall asleep.

That, my friend, would be me. The voice says, echoing in my mind as I suddenly find myself wide awake and in the Observation room in the ceiling of the Geofront. In front of me, with his arms crossed behind his head, is Michael.

Do you miss me much? he asks me as I stare at him, wondering where I am, and if I'm dreaming.

This isn't a dream…not exactly. Think of it as a…long distance call. Michael smiles.

'Long distance call'? What do you mean? I say.

My kind, what you call Angels, do not truly die. When we die, our minds splinter and are reborn in the next generation. None of these splinter minds are the same as their 'father' mind, but they do have some of the original's memories. He says, lowering his arms and looking down to the floor of the Geofront. My mind has not yet splintered, so I am saying goodbye to you while I still can.

So…why are you here now? I ask, have you said you goodbyes to the others?

He chuckles, shaking his head slightly. Yes I have. You are the last on the list, so to speak. I have something to add to what they told you: each of the angels you have found are splinters of Tabris, like me. But there are more, and they are splinters of the other angels. They may not be as friendly towards the offspring of the first Pilots as I and my siblings are.

What?! What do you mean? Is there going to be another Angel War? I ask, not quiet panicking. Suddenly I find us on the catwalk in front of Unit-01.

Not exactly…but you should be prepared. I do not wish harm on my friends. He smiles sadly as he glance to me.

As the view begins to fade, and I feel myself starting to truly fall asleep, he turns and walks off down the catwalk. Before he rounds the corner, I hear an echo of laughter and a hazy image of us walking with him.

I hope we get to meet one of his splinters. I hope he or she remembers us.

AN: This is the first chapter of a continuation fic for EoE. Beginning twenty years after the end of EoE, it follows the children of the Children, and the child of Ritsuko and Ryoji.

_**Fallen Angel**_

_NGE Fanfic  
By Devaro Ayanami_

I step down from the shattered steps of an apartment complex, and glance around me at my fellow pilots. Four of us, four Children out of a original five. Four 15-year old kids. My Friends.

First, Twelfth Children: Terinami "Hellfire" Soryu, daughter of the Second and Third Children, she chose to use her mother's maiden name. Her coppery hair tied back in a single, loose ponytail, and her stormy blue eyes so much like her father's.

Next, Eleventh Children: Arael "Angel" Ayanami, she is the daughter of Kensuke Aida and the First Children. Her shoulder-length blue hair gently frames her face, and contrasts with her sharp, red eyes.

Then, fifteenth Children: Alexander "White Knight" Kaji, son of Ritsuko and Ryoji Kaji, he gets his nickname because he bleaches and dyes his hair white. Unlike his father, he keeps his hair short, reducing the contrast with his brown eyes.

And lastly, me, fourteenth Children: Ryoji "Iincho" Horaki, son of the Fourth Children and Hikari Horaki. My nickname is because I was our class's Iincho, like my mother, before we became Eva Pilots. My hair is short and brown, matching my brown eyes.

None of them look up, all of them lost in thought. He's dead, and so are three of the five enemy pilots, the other two in the infirmary. What have we come to? To be sending kids to war, to kill other kids. But which is worse? That kids are having to grow-up in a trial by fire, or that some of those kids gleefully leap into the flames?

My team is lucky though, we work for Nerv, and our parents learned from their experiences. They do everything they can to keep us safe, without leaving us un-prepared for the reality of what we are asked to do.  
But it wasn't enough. In our first engagement, we've lost someone, a new kid who never sat in the plug before today. No real chance to get to know him. It sickens me to realize I don't even remember his name. And what makes it worse is that we did everything right. He may have been new, but he did good, better than my uncle Shinji said he did in his first match. We just got ambushed. We didn't screw-up, we just lost. But like Terinami says, "Losing and screwing-up are the same damn thing".

I look at Soryu, and just barely spot the tears on her cheeks as she looks at the building her Eva, Unit-02, is hunched behind, her eyes not really seeing. I know how she must feel, because although we didn't really know him, we had still grown attach to the quiet and subtle jokes he made through-out the day.

I turn next to Arael, and am not surprised to see a blank expression on her face as she looks at the hood of the battered car she's sitting on, an expression we've grown-up to expect from both the Ayanami women. What I am surprised by is the tears slowly filling her eyes, something totally at odds with her lack of expression. I'd never seen her do anything but show a small smile or frown, and the one time that she laughed.

As I start walking towards Arael, I glance over at Alex. He's my best friend, and I see on his face an expression I'm used to from him: sadness. He always seems sad about something, but this time I know what it is: the other pilot. He catches my glance and nods his head, then turns to look at Soryu. He'll be fine after he's had some alone time, but I know he'll stay with Soryu, bottling his hurt away 'til later.  
I reach Arael and place my hand on her shoulder gently.

"Angel...?" I say.

She turns her gaze to my face as I touch her shoulder,

"Iincho, I...Ryoji-kun, Michael is…" She tries to speak in her typical calm and quiet manner, but stops, and her mask falls away as all the tears she had been holding back begin to flow slowly down her face.

I step around to kneel in front of her and I hug her close as she begins to silently cry. I gently rub her upper back, whispering it would be alright. After a moment she wraps her arms around me, returning the hug. I wish I could do more, but I don't know what to say or do, so all I do is hold her, trying to take some of the hurt away. I'm not really sure why, but she seemed to have an almost sibling-like relationship with Michael from the moment he arrived in the briefing room that first day.

I wouldn't know until later how similar Michael, her, and Rei's backgrounds were.

I feel horrible. I feel empty inside, gaining no comfort from the knowledge that I killed those trying to kill me.  
I feel hurt, both physically and emotionally. My body aches from remembered hits my Eva took during the hurried combat to protect Nerv. I feel tired as well, the adrenaline beginning to wear off.

"I'm tired," Terinami says quietly, but loud enough we all hear her, "let's head back."  
We all nod, and follow her to the Recovery VTOL that is waiting for us nearby.

* * *

"The idiots! Nerv trains their pilots, guides them in building Eva-type combat-support vehicles, and what do they do? Bite the hand that feeds them." the Director of Operations and Nerv Sub-Commander, Asuka Langley Ikari, yells. We stand nearby in the Observation room which overlooks the Geofront, waiting for the commander, Rei Ayanami, to arrive.  
As if summoned by the thought, Commander Ayanami walks into the room, a folder held under one arm as she looks over each of us, pausing on her daughter as a small flash of concern flows across her face.

"Pilot Soryu, Pilot Kaji, you are dismissed. You performed well, now go get some rest." she says, her face softening slightly.

"I'll be home in a little while schatzen, your father is already there." Asuka says, sounding far more gentle than a few moments before, as Terinami and Alexander leave the room.

"Pilot Horaki," Rei says drawing mine and the other's attention back to her, "What I am about to tell you is highly classified. Only five other people, including myself, know this: Michael O'Neil was an Angel. Similar to the the 17th, Tabris, whom most knew as Kaoru Nagisa."

"WHAT!?!" Asuka explodes, storming over to Rei, "You let an ANGEL into the base and pilot an Eva! What were you THINKING!?!"

"He posed no threat to us." she simply says.

"He…posed no THREAT?!? He was an ANGEL for crying out loud! How could he 'not pose a threat' !?!"

"Because Lilith and Adam are gone, and neither I nor my daughter have sufficiently pure angel genetics to initiate a 'Fourth Impact'. More so than Tabris, Pilot O'Neil had free will to choose what he wished to do. With Adam and Lilith gone, there was nothing drawing him. No need to bond with the First or Second."

I stand there, not sure what to do or say. I'm not sure what shocked me more: the fact that Michael was an angel, or the little fact Rei let slip that she and Arael are both part angel as well.  
The last part made sense, I guess. I, like the others, had simply always believed the hair and eyes were oddly colored because Rei was a clone of Yui Ikari, and that Arael simply got it from being her daughter. None of us had ever connected their eye color with that of Kaoru's eyes from the few color pictures there were of the 17th angel. We had also not made the connection between Michael's grey hair, at seventeen no less, with Kaoru's hair color. Though in our defense his eyes where not red, but purple.

"Commander…" all three turn to me when I speak, and I clear my thoat nervously, "Did you just, uh, just say you're part angel…?"  
She blinks, and I can almost see her replaying her words in her mind, and then her eyes widen. She turns her gaze, which was hinting at panic, towards Asuka, who simply shrugs. Rei then turns her gaze, now looking slightly worried, to her daughter. Arael shrugs and turns her face so I can't see it, but not before I catch a hint of fear on it.

"I did." she says, turning back to me, her face blank.

"Could you…clarify please?"

Nodding, she explains her origins and original purpose. She also tells me of her choice to alter Shinji's wish to return alone by sending others back. Asuka smiles, her eyes distant, as Rei tells of her returning to find Shinji and Asuka dating, and their including her as Shinji's sister. She also reveals the presence of other Angels, like Tabris and Michael, that she and the Magi computers have discovered.

"You mean there are MORE of them?!?" Asuka interrupts.

"Yes, though they are few. So far seven have been found, not counting Pilot O'Neil, all in Japan. I do not know if others exist. Michael was the only one found in Tokyo-3, and the only one contacted to be a Pilot." Rei replies, glancing over to Asuka.

"Fine. So, what now? Obviously we can't trust China any more, and we may have to guard against Russia as well!" Asuka says as she and Rei begin to discuss future plans for Nerv.  
The sudden change in topic throwing me off, I turn to Arael. She meets my gaze, and I still see the fear in her eyes, but I see hope too.

"Truth?" I simply say.

"…all of it…" she replies after a moment, determination entering her eyes.  
I walk over to her, keeping my face a blank as I can. I see the determination waver a moment before hardening again as I stop in front of her.

"Thank you." I say, before gently wrapping my arms around her, silently letting her know I'm not mad and that I still trust her.  
At first tense, she relaxes and returns the hug. We stand there for a moment before I hear a sigh behind me. We jump apart, startled, as we both remember there are others in the room. Asuka chuckles as she watches, and Rei simply smiles her normal smile, as we both turn slightly red.

"Go on home you two." Asuka says.

"I will see you soon, Arael. Pilot Horaki, I will see you before the synch test tomorrow, along with the other Pilots." Rei speaks as she turns back to Asuka, and we leave the room.

* * *

I lay in my bed, thinking. So much happened today. Struggle, victory, loss, revelation. I'm not sure what to make of it all, but I'm sure I can trust the others. I wonder how they'll react to what I was told, about Michael, Rei, and Arael.  
_Probably not as bad as Asuka did_, I think as I chuckle quietly.  
Seven more angels, all of which could be friends if we find them.

**Friends…or enemies…**

I jump, startled, as thoughts not my own float through my mind.  
_What was that…_ I think, before yawning, and begin to fall asleep.

**That, my friend, would be me. **The voice says, echoing in my mind as I suddenly find myself wide awake and in the Observation room in the ceiling of the Geofront. In front of me, with his arms crossed behind his head, is Michael.

**Do you miss me much?** he asks me as I stare at him, wondering where I am, and if I'm dreaming.

**This isn't a dream…not exactly. Think of it as a…long distance call.** Michael smiles.

_'Long distance call'? What do you mean?_ I say.

**My kind, what you call Angels, do not truly die. When we die, our minds splinter and are reborn in the next generation. None of these splinter minds are the same as their 'father' mind, but they do have some of the original's memories. **He says, lowering his arms and looking down to the floor of the Geofront. **My mind has not yet splintered, so I am saying goodbye to you while I still can.**

_So…why are you here now?_ I ask, _have you said you goodbyes to the others?_

He chuckles, shaking his head slightly. **Yes I have. You are the last on the list, so to speak. I have something to add to what they told you: each of the angels you have found are splinters of Tabris, like me. But there are more, and they are splinters of the other angels. They may not be as friendly towards the offspring of the first Pilots as I and my siblings are.**

_What?! What do you mean? Is there going to be another Angel War?_ I ask, not quiet panicking. Suddenly I find us on the catwalk in front of Unit-01.

**Not exactly…but you should be prepared. I do not wish harm on my friends.** He smiles sadly as he glance to me.

As the view begins to fade, and I feel myself starting to truly fall asleep, he turns and walks off down the catwalk. Before he rounds the corner, I hear an echo of laughter and a hazy image of us walking with him.  
I hope we get to meet one of his splinters. I hope he or she remembers us.

**AN:** This is the first chapter of a continuation fic for EoE. Beginning twenty years after the end of EoE, it follows the children of the Children, and the child of Ritsuko and Ryoji. _Yeah, I keep changing things._ I could use a pre-reader, if anyone wants to. R&R please!


	3. War Story, Eighteenth Again

**War Story / Eighteenth Again**

NGE Fanfic

_By Devaro Ayanami_

Arael snapped awake, the hazy feelings of warmth slowly fading, though not as fast as the dreams.

"Michael…" she whispers as she clings to the still recallable dream, as the other slowly fades away, "Friends and family… And someone with my name, but not my face…"

She shivers, then slowly gets out from under the covers of her futon. Padding quietly out of her room and into the living room, she is surprised when she sees her mother sitting at the table in the kitchen. _It's not even five o'clock yet…_ She walks over to the blue-haired woman, and gently places her hand on her shoulder.

"Mother, is something wrong?"

Rei turns her head to look at her daughter, smiling gently as she shakes her head.

"No, I am fine." She arches a light blue eyebrow, "Are you fine? You do not usually get up before six at the earliest."

Arael hesitated, then sighed and sat in the chair to her mother's right. Rei sat patiently, watching her daughter order her thoughts like she had taught her. Rei believed an ordered mind prevented misunderstanding and allowed for maximum use of intellect. It worked for her in her capacity as Supreme Commander, and she hoped what little, to her, she had instilled in her daughter would aid her as she matured. Her husband had used her logic against her numerous times, one of which resulted in the young girl sitting beside her, and she was completely aware of the faults pure use of Logic had.

Her musings where cut short when Arael took a deep breath, and began to speak.

"I had a… dream. I was walking to school, when a huge white foot slammed down in front of me. I looked up as it lifted into the air and blurred as it moved forward."

***

Arael was knocked to the ground by what wasn't possible: her Evangelion. It ran forward and out of view behind several buildings. A moment later she heard the clash of battle, Prog knife and Eva-fist slicing and bashing.

_How did- Where am- _"This isn't possible…?!"

"Ah, but it is where we are now." a smooth, calming voice says from behind her, and she spins and suddenly finds herself in what was once the resting place of Lilith but now is empty and waiting. Terminal Dogma.

"Mi-Michael…?" She whispers, unable to believe her eyes at the impossible sight before her. The grey-haired, purple-eyed boy, who had felt so much like a lost sibling, stood between her and the empty and broken-in-half cross which once held the Second Angel. A calming smile graced his face, marred only by the sadness in his eyes, his arms crossed behind his head.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to go with you and the others to the ramen shop they mentioned."

"Is this a… a-"

"Dream?" he interrupts, "Why do all Lilim think this a dream? You, at least, should feel the truth of the matter." And she did, she realized. This wasn't a dream, but something similar to when she was younger, and her mother's lullabies when link them together and Rei would show her the things she did when she was first going out with the one who would become her husband. A gentle, mental touch. A delicate melding of the edges of their AT-Fields.

"Think of this as a last phone call. Our kind, what you call Angels, do not truly die. When we die, our minds splinter and are reborn in the next generation. None of these new selves are the same as their 'parent' mind, but they do have some of the original's memories." he says, lowering his arms and looking down to the lake of LCL. "My mind has not yet splintered, so I am saying goodbye to you, Little Sister, while I still can."

"And then you will be gone?" tears fill her eyes, glistening there as she speaks, "I am to lose you before I could really get to know you?"

"I am truly sorry. There is nothing but for me to wish you well, and fade into the minds of those that will follow from me." the smile become shaky as he speaks, "Be prepared for others who, like me, are reflections of those Angels killed in the Angel Wars. Those of Iruel should be most watched for. He is not called the angel of fear for nothing."

"Is there really going to be another Angel War?"

"I dearly hope not, Little Sister." Suddenly she found herself in the Eva Cages, and Michael turns and walks off down the catwalk. Before he rounds the corner, she hear an echo of laughter and a hazy image of her and her friends walking with him. "Take care…"

***

Finishing her tale, Arael feels the tears in her eyes, but they are not purely of sadness. She truly was glad she been able to see her… brother, one last time.

"Was that all he said about the other Angels we've been detecting?" Rei gently asked, knowing that any information needed to be told before the mental meeting had a chance to fade away completely.

"Yes. Just a warning about those who descend from Iruel… I think I'll go back to bed now, mother."

"Be ready for a meeting in the Observation Room at ten hundred hours, my daughter. I think it is time we told the others what Asuka, Shinji and I already know of the AT-Field."

* * *

Ryoji Horaki watches from beside Arael as Aden Ashcroft, a blond haired and hazel eyed pilot transferred from America; Jaina Ryan, a blond haired and blue eyed transfer from Germany; and Alex Kaji slowly file into the Observation room followed by Junior Magi Technician Daniel Casey, a brown haired and purple eyed boy, and his younger sister Elaine. Rei, Asuka, Shinji, and Terinami stand in the center of the room waiting, the lighting from the floor screens giving an odd, almost sinister look to those in the room. Seeing Daniel and Elaine enter, Ryoji and the other Pilots exchange confused glances before their attention is drawn back to Rei as she takes a step towards the gathered Children.

"Now that we are all here, I will begin the briefing." Rei says, "As you all know, twenty years ago Shinji, Asuka and myself faced and defeated fifteen entities we call Angels. Shortly after the defeat of the last Angel, Tabris, otherwise known as Kaworu, the secret occult organization known as Seele attacked Nerv using the Japanese Strategic Self-Defense Force."

"By the time of the attack I had been in a catatonic state for nearly a week, completely ignorant of the outside world." Asuka says stepping up next to Rei, her face unreadable, "Before they breached the Geo-front, Misato ordered for me to be put into my plugsuit and placed into my Eva. She then had them launch me in the bottom of the lake in the Geo-front believing it would be the safest place for me."

"At the same time," Shinji says from his place behind the two women, "Misato is rescuing me from an infiltration team. They had been ordered to kill everyone, especially Pilots. Misato got there just before one of them could pull the trigger. She had to almost literally drag me to her car."

"Drag you? What was wrong? Had you been hurt?" Aden interrupted.

"No," Shinji almost spits, his voice filled with disgust, "I has physically fine,"

Terinami places her hand on his forearm and Shinji takes a calming breath. Receiving a reassuring smile she lowers her hand as Shinji continues in a calmer voice.

"I was deeply depressed, not far behind Asuka in activity level. I was still trying and failing to deal with killing someone who had been my friend for those few days while Asuka was in the hospital and I was afraid of Rei."

"You mean…?!" Jaina gasps.

"Yes. Kaworu Nagisa, Tabris the Seventeenth Angel, was my friend. Whether it was an ability of his from being an Angel or he really was my friend, I don't know." Shinji stares down at the view of the Geo-front floor, his fist clenching and unclenching. "the day before the attack by Seele and the SDF, Kaworu used Unit-02 to get to Terminal Dogma. Once there he stopped and waited for me. I found out later that it was partly because the Angel trapped there was Lilith and not Adam, who he was looking for. He told me he wanted me to live, that he and not I should die. So I… I followed orders… I crushed him in my Eva's hand."

"While Misato was taking Shinji to the Eva Cages, I had woken up to depth charges going off near my Eva. I thought I was going to die. I started chanting that I didn't want to die over and over. Then I felt the link to my Eva re-open and I began to synch." Asuka says, her face still blank, but a faint hint of joy was in her eyes. "I activated my Unit and stood up, lifting the cruiser floating on the surface of the lake. As they started to fire at me I shifted the ship and hurled it at the shore where a line of artillery was firing from. One thought rang through my mind then: I'm back."

"Sometime during the trip from where Misato found me to the elevator down to the cages, Maya-san put Asuka's communications over Headquarter's intercom. I could hear her shouting in joy that her Eva was working for her again, and her annoyance with me for not being there to see her glorious battle." Shinji chuckles slightly, then continues, "Misato had been shot outside the corridor to the elevator. She shoved me into the elevator and closed the door. I thought she had died, and my self-pity and depression spiraled further down-hill. My need to help the only remaining person I cared for drove me to reach the cages, but when I arrived I found my Eva trapped beneath Bakelite."

"Near as we can remember, this is the point when the JSSDF pulled back and the Mass-Production series Evas arrived. Asuka attacked them with glee and enthusiasm, downing several of them in rather gruesome ways. All the while she was yelling for Shinji to come out and help her, demanding his presence during her greatest battle yet." Rei says, then pauses as she waits to see if Asuka will speak, but when Asuka shakes her head and turns away from the Children, Rei continues, "Right as she downs the last two MP-Evas a Blade is thrown at her by one of the others, which had recovered. She used her AT-Field to stop it, but it transformed into a smaller version of the Lancea Longinus and pierced the field and her Evas head just as her power ran out."

"I managed to reactivate my Eva in a controlled Berserker state, mainly because I was berserk by this point, but it proved fatal." Asuka says quietly, Shinji's arms wrap around her from behind as she turns back to them, "All the other Evas had recovered and simply threw their Lances at me, splitting my arm and piercing my body in multiple places."

"Mama died then, right before Third Impact. So did Misato, after she shoved Daddy into the elevator. They both remember it." Terinami says to them as Asuka turns in Shinji's arms, Terinami has tears in her eyes as she continues, "Rei was in Terminal Dogma during most of this. her mind wasn't her own back then, not after she died blowing up her Eva to kill the Sixteenth Angel anyways."

"She did what?!?" Alex exclaims, "She died, but then how was she there in Terminal Dogma?"

"I was a clone. All that Dr Akagi had to do was load my most recent memories into a spare body and I could miraculously 'survive' anything." Rei says, and shock spreads over the Children's faces, "Shinji's father, Gendo Ikari, was the one in control. He was going to use me to start a Third Impact under his control in order to reunite with his wife."

"But only Angels can unite with Adam or Lilith." Daniel interrupts calmly, reaching out to take his sister's hand, "correct?"

Rei nods as this information is absorbed by the other Children. The pilot's eyes widen as they stare at Rei.

"That is correct. This is the main reason I called for this meeting." Rei states, "I am one-half Angel, specifically Lilith. The other half of my genetic material is that of Yui Ikari, Shinji's mother."

"Then that means…" Alex says calmly, turning to Arael.

"Yes…" Arael says quietly from beside Ryoji, "I am one-quarter Angel. My father knew before he and mother were married. I think it made him want to marry her all the more, the way he talks about how he proposed, quote, 'to an angel'." Arael grins with the last few words.

"Maybe, but the stooge sure flipped out first." Asuka says chuckling, no malice in the word stooge.

"This isn't surprising to you at all, Ryoji-kun." Elaine says, "You already knew all this?"

"Not all of it…just the part about Arael and the commander being part Angel." he replies. "Father never really talks much about the Angel Wars, and wasn't around Tokyo-3 after Unit-00 blew up…"

The small groups stands quietly, the Pilots thinking over the revelation and the others waiting patiently.

Rei watches the siblings, an eyebrow arched in curiosity. Daniel glances at her, hesitant to look her in the eye. Elaine gives his hand a gentle squeeze, before letting go and stepping up to the Pilots. Curious, the Pilots look to this mysterious person who has joined them for the revealing of secrets, wondering what secrets they might be telling now.

"M-my n-name," Elaine clears her throat, continuing in a slightly more confident tone as Daniel steps up behind her, "My name is Elaine Casey, and I remember falling to earth, only to be caught by three powerful beings, a pain in my heart, and then nothing."

"What are you babbling about?" Asuka demands.

"Did we not fight an Angel which fell from the sky?" Rei inquired.

When Asuka gasps behind her, Elaine slowly turns to face Asuka and Shinji, who are staring at her with a mixture of worry, curiosity, and a warning not to try anything blazing in Asuka's eyes.

"Yes," Elaine whispers just load enough for the group to hear her, "I was once Sahaquiel. Now I am Elaine Casey."

Daniel steps up next to her and faces the Pilots, a hardness Rei had not seen before settling over his features.

"I am Daniel Casey, and I remember being slammed to the ground, my chest being pounded upon, a pain in my heart, and flames taking me to darkness." he turns to face Rei, "I was once Sachiel. Now I am Daniel Casey."

Shock covers Shinji's face as he takes in the fact his first opponent in the Angels Wars is now standing in front of him looking far more human than the thing that attacked him that day twenty-one years ago. As he switches his gaze from one revealed angel to the other, Asuka hardens her gaze and steps up to the two children.

"What do you mean: I once was an angel from the Angel Wars? Either you are or you aren't!" Asuka's demands.

"Actually… that's not completely true…" Terinami says nervously.

"What do you mean Schatzen?" Shinji says, fluently using one of Asuka's favorite nicknames for Terinami as said woman stares at her daughter incredulously.

"Well, ya see… I, uh, I talked to Michael last night-"

"You did too?" Ryoji interrupts, "I wasn't sure if I was dreaming or not-"

"What are you speaking of?" Rei quietly demands as Arael's eyes widen, and locks her gaze on Ryoji's, "What do you mean you spoke to him last night?"

"I was falling asleep," Rioji says, swallowing nervously as he wonders if he might be in trouble, "when suddenly I felt fully awake and standing here, with Michael a few feet away. We talked for a bit, and he told me he was a… a fragment, a shard, of Tabris. He said he wasn't the only shard of an angel from the Angel Wars, and to be on the look-out for fragments that might wish us harm simply because we killed their original."

The group looks at the Casey's in a new light, wondering if they are friend or foe. Digesting this information, Shinji turns to the two.

"You told us you once were Sachiel and Sahaquiel, but now you aren't. Does that mean you don't want to hurt us?" he asks gently.

"I've worked diligently with Dr. Ayanami, though his work kept me close to his wife, the commander, and made it impossible to hide my nature from her," Daniel says, "So I could prove myself a friend and a valuable ally."

"I had planned on leaving, though," Elaine adds, "once my S2 organ became active."

"What do you mean: Active?" a voice echoes from the shadows back near the door, causing several of the Children to jump.

"I told you I would be back in time for our usual noon meal. Why are you here?" Rei says quietly.

"Come on, you know me." a man who appears to be Rei's age, though with a hint of grey at his temples, walks away from the door and into the light. Reaching up, he adjust his glasses as he continues, "How could I pass-up a chance like this: secret meeting in the observation room? If only I had my old camera!"

"Well, I figured the stooge would stick his nose in here at some point." Asuka sighs, and Shinji and Kensuke chuckle at her tone.

"I fail to find a believable reason for you to bring your old camera, as it no longer functions." Rei says, a small smile on her face.

"I'm hurt, Rei." he replies, a fake expression of hurt on his face before he chuckles, "You know it's my favorite camera."

"Perhaps…" Rei's smile fades, "Why did you really come here? I left nothing which might have led you here."

Kensuke chuckles and steps past the Children and stands in front of Daniel and Elaine. Reaching into a pocket of his wrinkled lab-coat he pulls out a Portable Magi Terminal, or PMT for short.

"I was running another scan of Tokyo-3, like normal, when I picked-up low level pattern blue signatures. I refined the scan, and eventually tracked it here. I took my PMT and tracked it to make sure it didn't move without me knowing before I could find it." he chuckles, "Imagine my surprise when I find that the room with the signature has been locked by my wife."

Kensuke reaches up and extends his hand toward Elaine. Just as his hand nears her shoulder, everyone gasps as a faint octagonal barrier appears and flickers as it keeps his hand from moving closer.

"As I thought, an emerging AT Field…" he murmurs.

"What do you mean, papa?" Arael asks.

"Remember when your Field first started manifesting? I kept getting similar signatures. When I saw these, I wondered if we might have another Terinami." Kensuke's expression turns thoughtful, "But neither of you is connected to Nerv other than by your job working with me, Daniel…"

"They're Angel's like Micheal, Kensuke." Shinji says.

"Like Micheal? Oh, you mean echoes?" Kensuke says, smiling eagerly, "Amazing! I KNEW he couldn't be the only one!"

Everyone else in the room shows various levels of surprise at his comment, and upon seeing their expressions he grins sheepishly.

"Oh, uh… When Micheal was here, I noticed similarities between his synch score and Harmonics, and Dr. Akagi's records of Tabris' synch score and Harmonics." Kensuke gestures towards both Arael and Terinami, "Both of them exhibit Harmoncis similar to their parents, though Teri-chan's is unique in that it echoes both Shinji's and Asuka's. I had wanted to perform more tests with Micheal, but…" Kensuke shrugs helplessly, as the others remember why no more test could performed with the Angel pilot.

"Wait a second… Commander, you said revealing that you where part Angel was the main reason you called us here…" Aden says, "What were the other reasons?"

"There are other Angels, just as Michaels shade told Pilot Horaki." Rei says, watching their reactions. "And we will be recruiting them to work here at Nerv."

As the others nod at this information, Arael turns and looks at Terinami, her expression questioning and patient. Terinami sighs, drawing the attention of the others, and as she steps forward the room shudders. The Children stare at each other, all thinking the same thing: _No, not again!_

"All hands to battle stations!" blares through the intercom, "Commander Ayanami, Doctor Ayanami, and Sub-Commander Ikari, please report to Central Dogma immediately!"

As the message is repeated, Asuka pulls out her cells and contacts the bridge while the Pilots run for the Cages.

"What's going on Makoto? Who's attacking now?" irritation and impatience in her voice.

"Sub-commander! Two pattern oranges detected ten kilometers outside our automated engagement range." Makoto, senior bridge officer, yells sounding both worried and excited, "They're bombing us with what appears to be Type-12 mortars!"

"Mobilize the Combi-walkers. I want second through fourth squads flanking the mortar positions, and have first squad give them covering fire." Asuka says, hanging up her phone and running to the elevator with Rei, Shinji, Daniel and Kensuke.

***

_Once more,_ Terinami and Arael's thoughts mirror as they climb into the entry-plugs, _we have to fight the eighteenth yet again._

***

_The Angel Wars never ended…_ Rei thinks, _It is simply locked at eighteen…_

**AN: **Chapter-3 (chap-2 if you don't count the first, inspiration one-shot) in my From the Ashes post-3I NGE fanfic. One day, after this and my others are finished, I'll go back and edit them so the chapters are longer. Even if that just means I stick chapters together, like did with his post-3I. (Over 150 chapters!!! In about ten or twelve post!) Once again: A pre-reader please, and R&R!!


	4. Attempted Invasion, Breaking News

**Neon Genesis Evangelion: From the Ashes**

Disclaimer: I don't own NGE or anything related to it. If I did, I'd have the Magi installed in my house and play Left 4 Dead on it all night. I don't own anything related to L4D either.

**Attempted Invasion / Breaking News**

NGE Fanfic

_By Devaro Ayanami_

_

_

_

_The Angel Wars never ended…_ Rei thought, _It is simply locked at eighteen…_

***

Major Sachio Tsuyoshi sighed as he turned from the massive hologram hanging in Nerv-Cambridge's Command Hall, the displayed image of Major Kagero Bayern, of the recently built Nerv-Arlington, fading as a bridge-tech closed the communication channel.

Built similar to Central Dogma in Nerv-Tokyo-3, the Command Hall and the bridge in it is only slightly smaller. Smaller, because the tall tower upon which Gendo once sat is not present in any of the other Branches. Actually, after the shattering of the Geofront, Third Impact, and the rebuilding of Tokyo-3, even Nerv-HQ no longer has the second, higher tower for commanders to look down upon their subordinates from.

The other major change, is that the massive room is brightly lit by shining new equipment. Though Nerv was given the newest hardware and software before the start of the Angel War, most of that gear was outdated by 2020. Now, Nerv stays at the bleeding edge of technology with advanced computer hardware and software, weapons, and support equipment for both soldiers and Evangelions. Nerv's key tool, the Magi Supercomputer, benefits greatly from the advanced hardware and software upgrades, continuing to stay years ahead of other supercomputer systems.

With the support gained through the careful release of information regarding the final days before Third Impact, Commander Fuyutsuki and Sub-Commander Katsuragi had been able to set Nerv up as the next UN peace-keeping force. The revelations of Seele and their control of the old UN resulted in a complete replacement of the UN Council and many military commanders, especially from Japan and Germany, but also from the U.S. and China.

Now an equal to the UN, Nerv provided troops and vehicles for peace keeping missions. One of these vehicles was the Combat Walker, or Combi-walker. Roughly one-quarter the size of an Eva, they were quite obviously machines. Short and blocky, and mounting either twin 155mm cannons in place of arms or a single cannon with a missile pack in place of the second cannon, Combi-walkers were protected by the same armor plating on Evangelions and could go toe-to-toe with modern main-battle-tanks. Civilian versions had been built for the construction industry, but were not yet as common as cranes and forklifts.

Later, once the Evangelions had been repaired and the pilots had finished their psychological recovery, Nerv employed Evangelions to enforce peace in the more advanced and prepared areas.

The use of the Evas in such a manner worried some that Nerv may one day try for a world take-over. To pacify them, now Commander Katsuragi agreed to the careful release of Evangelion technology to select world powers. The one thing they did not release was the criteria for Piloting. The Commander did this to ensure all Pilots had some sense of the truth about Nerv through their initial training, and thus would hopefully not be used against them in the future.

All of this had been revealed to the Major during Nerv Officer Training, and didn't really concern him at the moment, not when he had learned of the death of several Pilots in Tokyo-3 during a raid launch by China and the now rogue Nerv base there. _The only good thing_, he thought, _is that only one of Pilots lost was ours…_

"Lieutenant, you have the Bridge. I'll be in my office." receiving a nod from the young woman nearby, Tsuyoshi walked to a door at the back wall of the bridge, a door that once lead up to the top of the command tower but now opens to a hallway outside a series of offices.

Reaching his door, he walked in and greeted the secretary at her desk, then continued on into his actual office. Sitting behind his desk, he opened a comm to Nerv-Tokyo-3. After a few minutes the window opened, and he was surprised to immediately see the faintly smiling face of Supreme Commander Rei Ayanami. Normally, he had to ask for who he wanted to speak to.

"Good evening, Major. When I was told of your call, I felt I should greet you personally." Rei said. He nodded and smiled in return, before his face became serious and apologetic.

"Thank you, Commander. I wanted to inquire about the battle this morning. Who… who did we lose?"

"Michael O'Neill… He fell defeating the last enemy Pilot, preventing them from getting out and reporting any information on our defenses…" Rei said, frowning. Tsuyoshi looked down at his hands on the desk.

"Already…? The first angel to die in the service of Nerv." Tsuyoshi murmured, then clinched his fists and looked up, "Will they ever change? The wars and near wars have been constant since only a year after Third Impact. War is all I remember."

"I understand… Major Sachio, there will be a sensitive information briefing tomorrow. It concerns Nerv's knowledge of current Angels." Rei said.

"Are you sure that is wise?" the Major asked, slight nervousness evident, "The Pilots-"

"The Pilots, two at least, already know or suspect Michael-san was an Angel." Rei says, "Just prepare your own briefing for your staff. I'm preparing a Pilot briefing, so only inform your command staff."

"As you say, Al-Ayanami-san." he stuttered. Rei frowned. She knows he is worried, but also knows he is in no danger. Nerv takes actions over accusations.

"Do not worry… I will be summoning all current Nerv commanders for a meeting here in Tokyo-3 in a week. Alert your Sub-Commander. See you soon."

"Soon then. Good luck." he smiled as the connection cut, then rubbed his face with his hands. _This is going to be a long day… and a long week._

***

Sachio rushed onto the bridge, sliding to a halt beside his Sub-Commander. Aelita Janson was a tall, lithe young woman a year younger than he, making them the youngest Base Commander and Sub-Commander in Nerv. She was also steady as a rock in stressful situations, and a straight forward thinker.

This was a whole new ball game though. The day after the failed attack on Nerv-HQ and before he could brief his staff, all hell broke loose. Every Nerv base, including Nerv-Cambridge, from Japan to Germany had come under attack from rogue Nerv forces and both Chinese and Russian militaries. The rogue forces had changed from the typical Nerv Orange and Tan to Seele White, and a few units now sported the Seven Eyes logo.

"I thought Seele was wiped out following Third Impact and during the UN's restructuring?" Capt. Janson asked, watching the holo-display as it showed the fires raging on the eastern edge of Cambridge, Boston, and Quincy.

"We all thought so…" Maj. Tsuyoshi answered, "Have we had any communication with any other branch?"

"No, sir. All out communications are being jammed. Even the Magi connections have somehow been cut." A bridge-tech reports. "Combi-walker squads are having trouble with off-shore bombardment. It appears they have a type-12 mortar on the deck of a freighter."

"What's the status of Boston and Quincy's Evas?" he asked, "Have they deployed them?"

"Yes sir. They've both deployed their respective Eva unit. Pilot Adams is requesting he be launched now."

"Do it." Tsuyoshi said, turning to Janson. She nodded.

"Eva Unit-JA. Launch!"

***

The Eva, painted like the famed unit-02 only with blue trim, and shaped like the Mass Production Evas of twenty years ago but with two beady eyes, jerked to a stop at the surface just outside the University grounds. Spotting the two other Evas using their AT-Fields to block the Type 12 Mortar's shots from reaching father inland and hitting the bases, it moved out towards a black unit which looked very much like it.

"This is Adams, requesting weapons release. I have Pattern Orange on visual." the young voice came from a boy the same age as Shinji when he first saw Eva. He had shoulder-length brown hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, his blue eyes sharp and alert.

"Pilot Adams, you have clearance. Engage, engage, engage."

"Roger." Adams brought his Eva's arm up, swinging the fully automatic, 155mm, Eva-sized machine gun to bear on the enemy Evangelion. Grinning, he pulled the trigger, unleashing a stream of explosive rounds downrange. The rounds slammed into the Eva's side, blasting off armor plate and rending the flesh on it left arm. The black Eva staggered and turned to face him as he paused in firing, its AT-Field snapping up and blocking the last few rounds.

"Signal confirmed. Enemy Eva is running on a dummy plug system. Aggressive lethal force authorized!" came from his comm, and he grinned wider.

"Rock on! Send me the prog armory on lift 9!" he said, moving to flank the Seele Eva and reach the launch pad his new weapons would be on. He'd always wanted to copy his favorite Pilot, with their talent with the Prog Knife.

Racking the rifle, Adams grabbed a pair of Jab-Daggers, Eva-sized Progressive punching daggers, and squared off against the enemy Eva.

***

The Seele Evangelion, chest butchered open and organs splashed over the university's grounds, lay still and cold, the dummy plug lying snapped in half next to its head. Adams kept his eyes glued to the burning city, finding it easier to block out the memory of falling organs and flowing blood from his vision by focusing on the flames.

"Pilot, report status." one of the bridge crew said softly, startling him and pulling him from his study of the burning coastline.

"This is Pilot John Adams, status green. Eva unit status chartreuse. Minor damage to armor on upper torso and flesh of left arm. Request recall order." he answered quietly.

"Roger Pilot, recall order in effect. Come on home."

"Roger…" he murmured, and turned his chariot towards the waiting retrieval pad.

Locking himself into the frame, Adams waited until the lift began to lower into the launch tunnel before shutting down his Eva and sitting in the orange glow of the standby lighting inside the plug.

The plug remained at a comfortable seventy degrees and cushioned him against most sudden and high-G movements. It did not, however, ease his discomfort at the joy he had felt as he almost literally butchered the enemy Evangelion. Despite the faint sensation of LCL on his skin as he sat in it, he still felt like he could feel the warm blood on his hands. His arm was slightly sore where the enemy Eva had clawed his Eva.

_The simulations were nothing like this. What have I gotten myself into?_

***

Tsuyoshi closed his desk terminal after the commanders for Boston and Quincy had signed off. They had just informed him of their staffs' reactions to the sudden release of information from the supreme commander. While they were surprised and more than a little worried, they had said they would continue to offer their support, and would see him in Tokyo-3 at the Commander's Brief in a week.

He still hadn't briefed his own staff.

_Maybe… maybe I should do that now…_ Reopening his terminal, he hesitated only a moment before he sent a summons to the PDAs each of his staff carried. Done with his terminal, he again closed it and got up. Leaving his office, he moved down the hall to the command briefing room.

He only had to wait a few minutes, during which he accessed what files he might need and loaded them to the room's screen, before his staff began to arrive. The last in was the base CMO, a dedicated woman in her early-forties who had studied under Professor Ibuki before being assigned to Cambridge.

"Now with everyone here, I'll begin. The following information is classified blue, meaning it is of the same level as the Angels were before Third Impact." Tsuyoshi began, "It is being released to Nerv commanders and their staffs, with a more complete briefing in a week in Tokyo-3 for commanders and sub-commanders."

"What do you mean as classified as the Angels?" the CMO, Doctor Casher, asked

"You'll understand shortly," Tsuyoshi replied, "Commander Ayanami, as all Nerv senior enlisted and officers know, is roughly one-half Angel, and her daughter is roughly one-quarter. Both have the ability to manifest an AT-Field and the Commander also has an S2-Organ. What is not generally known, but to a select few, is there are still Tabris-type Angels living on Earth."

Three of the officers visibly reacted, with the remaining two reacting audibly. The most notable being the overly dramatic and obviously faked gasp which came from the sub-commander. Tsuyoshi shot Janson a dirty look, and she merely gave her best "I'm innocent" expression.

"I assume you already knew this, sub-commander?" the section-2 chief, Douglas, noted with a slight texas drawl.

"You would be correct. What kind of sub-commander would I be if I didn't know what my commander was going to say before anyone else?" she replied in a bored tone.

"As I was saying," Tsuyoshi said in a slightly louder tone than truly necessary, "There are currently thirty known Angels living on Earth, most within a thousand miles of T-3, the origin point of 3-I."

"What is Commander Ayanami's current policy on Angels?" Douglas interjected.

"Observation only. Though several have been recruited."

"For what purpose?"

"Closer observation. She feels if we can gain their trust, then we can convince them to work with us and not for anyone that may wish to use their abilities against us."

"Who are some of those in our care?" Casher asked.

Janson and Tsuyoshi glance at each other, a look caught by everyone in the room, and Janson got up and moved to stand slightly in front of Tsuyoshi. The others watched them both, wary and slightly confused.

"The Major has served Nerv without complaint or fault for four years, placing those who work with him on the top of his 'must protect' list."

The gathered officers glanced at each other, wondering where this was leading. Tsuyoshi cleared his throat, and when he had everyone's undivided attention, he spoke.

"I was the first Angel recruited."

His staff stared at him, Douglas looking decidedly nervous and Casher suddenly neutral as compared to her earlier concern. When no one moved or said anything, Janson spoke up.

"I take it none of you are particular about whether our commander is an Angel?" she asked, sounding mildly amused.

"I take it you already knew he was an Angel?" Casher asked, looking at them both rather pointedly, "It would explain why you stood where you could easily block any attacks on him."

"Yes. I was told when I accepted the transfer. We had a rather long conversation on Angels, command responsibilities, and loyalty after I arrived."

"Obviously," Douglas drawled, "You liked what you heard. Or we would either have a different commander or sub-commander."

Both the CO and XO nodded. Redman, the Chief Evangelion Technician, cleared his throat for attention.

"Then my question, I'm afraid, must be about the last of those three." he stated in a slightly nervous tone, "Where, exactly, _do_ your loyalties lie?"

Janson looked angered at the tech's question, but looked to Tsuyoshi before speaking. Tsuyoshi shook his head and stepped forward to address Redman.

"My loyalty lies in the same place as the All Mother's: with the Lilim." he said firmly, confidently.

"Even if we 'Lilim' may wish you harm? And who is this All Mother?" Casher asked.

"The All Mother is, yet is not, Commander Ayanami." he said, answered by the confused looks of several people. Doctor Morishita, Cambridge's Magi operator, leans forward.

"Because she shares DNA with Lilith?" she asked, and is answered with a hesitant nod from Tsuyoshi, "And with Lilith gone, Commander Ayanami would be the closed thing to her."

"I'm not sure about others like me, but I can feel the All Mother when I focus, distant as she is from here. I know she is the one I must follow." he said, looking thoughtful, "I get the feeling it's something like the compulsion Tabris must have felt in his search for Adam."

"What of the need for complementation?" asked Dr Morishita.

"There is only, for lack of a better term, a need to please. If she is happy, then I can be happy. Like a child for their mother."

Morishita nodded her acceptance of his answer as the others sat in thought. After a few minutes, Janson sat down and brought up the slides that had been waiting in the rooms display queue. The first image displayed was that of Tabris, specifically the picture that had been on his Nerv Pilot ID card. The broadly smiling image seemed to look out at the gathered officers, as if greeting new found friends.

"Tabris, as we all know, was the seventeenth Angel. He was unique in two ways. One: he was a clone of Adam and Keel Lorenz, the head of the Seele council, also known as the Old Men, at the time." Janson said, bringing up an image of the glowering chairman, "Two: despite his clone status like, at the time Pilot, Ayanami, his Angel DNA overwrote his human DNA and he was classed as a full Angel, yet he maintained his human form."

"He was the first of us to realize we didn't need Adam to feel complete. That we could find it elsewhere." Tsuyoshi said as he sat, "But he was still to close to Adam, and couldn't fight The Need. So he rigged the fight."

"We all know how things went from there." Janson continued, "The invasion of Nerv, the loss of Unit Two, and Third Impact. What was not released until now was that when Shinji Ikari rejected Instrumentality, even the Angels where given a chance to return."

"As far as can be determined, every Angel interviewed so far has vague memories of having been one of the last fifteen Angels." Tsuyoshi again took over, "Adam has not been found as yet, and neither has Lilith."

"If I might ask, Commander, who do you remember?" Casher asked.

"Sachiel. Quite strongly, actually. I can vividly recall most of the fight he had with Unit One. Luckily, I can not recall the pain." He shook his head, "I am told one of the Magi techs at HQ also remembers Sachiel, though not as strongly as I do."

Casher nodded, leaning back in her seat. Janson brought up the next image. It displayed three children, two brunettes with purple eyes, one male and the other female, and an albino male, all roughly fourteen years old. All of them instantly realized they were looking at the images of three young Angels.

Janson brought up the ID pitures of the two brunettes, their names appearing below them.

"These two are Daniel and Elaine Casey. Daniel is the one who also remember's Sachiel, and his sister remembers Sahaquiel. They were found in Okinawa, and cared for by Nerv until Daniel began asking to work with Ibuki on the Magi. Now, he studies and works under Dr Ayanami, the commander's husband, who now monitors Tokyo-3's Magi."

She then switched to an image of the boy who looked so much like Tabris, his name appearing at the bottom of the image.

"This is Michael O'Niel. He remembered Tabris himself, in a similar fashion as Commander Tsuyoshi. He was selected to be a Pilot, and was placed under the Horaki's care." Janson changed the image to one of Michael and the other Tokyo-3 Pilots in their plugsuits, "Michael died three days ago in the surprise attack on HQ by China. He spoke to each Pilot in their dreams that night, explaining what he and other's like him were."

"And this prompted Commander Ayanami to release information to most of Nerv's current command staff?" Douglas asked, sounding incredulous that a set of dreams would cause this release of classified knowledge.

"Yes. The All Mother believed at was time to tell the Pilots, and her daughter decided it was time to tell other commanders." Tsuyoshi answered, "I and the Sub-commander will be going to HQ in four days for a commanders' brief. I'll report back what I can upon my return. Until then, if there are no more questions, dismissed for the day."

Everyone stood and filed out, leaving Tsuyoshi and Janson alone in the room. Janson closed down the terminal and moved to leave. Turning at the door, she saw Tsuyoshi still sitting in his chair at the table and walked back to him.

"Commander? You should go get some rest." she said.

"I know…" his voice sounded small, especially with it coming from a man who usually came across as a father figure to a lot of the younger Nerv personnel.

"Sachio, it's alright. They still trust you, no one hates you or even what you are."

"But…"

"No buts." she cuts him off, "I've known you for two years, and that whole time I've known the truth and still trust you."

"I just don't want anymore death…"

"I know," she places a hand on his shoulder, "but all we can do is save what we can. We aren't Ikaris, neither of us is either of the Ikari men."

He placed his hand on hers, and they stood in silence for a few moments, before Tsuyoshi fiddled with a paper and spoke.

"I've been talking with All Mother… and she has agreed to release recruiting restrictions on Angels. I'll be bringing in the first recruits when we get back from HQ."

"Alright. Now go get some rest, my angel."

"_Your's_." he said quietly, firmly, and smiled up to her.

"Yes," she whispered, "_My_ Angel."

___

___

___

**AN: **Chapter-4 (chap-3 if you don't count the first, inspiration one-shot) in my From the Ashes post-3I NGE fanfic. Tsuyoshi is a supporting character, not a main character.(At least I don't intend, at the moment, for him to be one…) He is not a self-insert, nor is he going to be a Mary Sue. The same goes for Adams and the other characters introduced here.

Please, R&R!!


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